Shein has appointed Gemma Dunne as the retailer’s first-ever chief product officer as the fashion giant attempts to bolster its UK-based product team.
Dunne is reported to have joined Shein last month from fellow fast-fashion giant PrettyLittleThing where she was most recently buying director, as first reported by Drapers.
Dunne first joined PLT as a senior buyer in October 2013 and has since held the role of buying manager, head of buying and buying director during her time at the fashion retailer.
In her new role, Dunne is expected to grow the retailer’s Manchester-based product team to reach a total of around 15 staff by next year as well as “building a new brand on Shein that is inspired by UK-based trends”.
The first collection inspired by UK fashion trends is anticipated to launch globally online at Shein in January next year.
Dunne told Drapers: “I am super excited to be joining Shein who are leading the fashion ecommerce sector – building a UK product team will allow Shein to have a localised focus on UK, Europe and US in terms of trend forecasting and localised product creation which will allow the business to elevate these markets even further.
“The industry is ever evolving and I personally feel you have to keep moving your focus and direction in order to stay relevant and to keep up with customer demand but also in order to progress and evolve as an individual.”
The announcement comes as it was confirmed yesterday that Frasers Group has sold Missguided’s intellectual property to Shein and flagged the potential for future collaboration between the pair.
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